Personal injury is an area of law pertaining to injuries suffered. However, personal injuries are different from other types of injuries. In some injuries, a person may be hurt because of his or her own actions. The basis of a personal injury case is fault.
Damages in a personal injury case result from the actions of someone else other than the victim. Unfortunately, many people who suffer severe injuries may not have valid personal injury cases. To prove personal injury, the injured party must prove several important elements. These elements form the basis for a viable personal injury claim.
Without several foundational concepts, a personal injury claim may fail to meet the legal definition of personal injury. A top South Florida Personal Injury Attorneys can help.
Many of the most prevalent personal injuries occur as a result of automobile accidents. Car accident injuries are frequently the result of another person’s actions. A driver may be driving drunk. A driver may be speeding. In some cases, a driver is generally making rash decisions on the road.
Automobile injuries are the most common type of personal injuries. These accidents can also lead to the most severe injuries. If you have suffered a personal injury, or believe you have suffered a personal injury, do not delay. You should immediately consult with a legal professional. A top South Florida Personal Injury Attorneys can examine your case quickly and effectively. Good injury lawyers understand exactly what you need to prove.
Proving A Personal Injury Claim
A sound personal injury case will include several important aspects. These elements demonstrate more than merely an injury or loss. These elements help to prove the liability of the other party. If you believe you have been injured as the result of another party’s actions, you should file a claim.
The most prevalent type of personal injury claim involves negligence. The term negligence is a legal concept that refers to behaviors that fail to follow certain levels of reasonable conduct. People who act irresponsibly, or fail to act, may be found negligent.
What is Negligence?
- Negligence is specifically defined as “conduct that falls below the standard established by law for the protection of others against unreasonable risk of harm.”
- In general, the legal concept of negligence consists of three parts. For a party to be found negligent in a personal injury case, the claimant must demonstrate all three of these elements. The Personal Injury Attorney Florida trusts can prove this negligence.
- In order to demonstrate legal negligence, a claimant must ultimately establish causation. However, a claimant must first show that there was a preexisting duty of reasonable care.
The first element of duty in a negligence personal injury claim is the “duty reasonable of care.”
What Is a Duty of Reasonable Care?
- In personal injury cases, there is a defendant and a claimant. The claimant is arguing that a personal injury occurred. The claimant will attempt to show that the defendant is liable for the injury. In demonstrating negligence, the injured claimant must first show a duty of care.
- A duty of care supposes that the defendant has an obligation. The defendant is obligated to take proper and reasonable care to prevent all cases of injury to the claimant. There are many statutes and laws that support a duty of care.
- In fact, many professionals have a duty of care. Physicians are obligated to act accordingly to protect their patients. Construction workers have a duty of care to be safe and take precautions. Many jobs and roles have duties that must be followed.
- Overall, professionals who do not maintain certain standards may be found negligent. However, proving negligence requires additional steps. Once a claimant successfully demonstrates that the defendant has a duty of care, the claimant must demonstrate there was a breach of that duty.
- This is not always easy. Not all parties are required to reach a certain standard. Moreover, some injured claimants may be responsible for their own injuries.
Proving A Breach Of Duty
- In personal injury cases, the claimant must prove that the defendant is at-fault. In order to demonstrate negligence, the personal injury victim should show how the breach occurred. A court will ask certain questions to determine a breach of duty of care.
- Generally, the defendant must be able to foresee the risk of harm in a given case. If that risk was not prevented, the defendant may be found in breach of duty. Sometimes, there are other options a defendant can take to avoid potential harm.
- If a defendant fails to take alternative actions, he or she may be in breach of duty- If these alternatives are determined to be reasonable in reducing the risk of harm, the court may find the defendant to have breached their duty. However, not all alternatives are effective or reasonable.
- In a personal injury case, the claimant must also show that the defendant’s actions form a connection with the injury. This connection must be causal. In other words, the defendant’s conduct directly led to the harm sustained by the injured party.
In order to show this causal link, a personal injury claimant must demonstrate actual and proximate causation.
Establishing Causation In Personal Injury Claims
Most injured claimants believe that causation is easy to show. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Many personal injury cases involve a number of factors. The claimant must show a clear chain of causation. This chain begins with the initial person or event and ends with the damages awarded.
There are typically four primary links in this chain
- The personal injury claim should demonstrate a connection between the breach of duty and the risk or hazard. For example, some injury victims are harmed by the environment. A piece of an old ceiling may fall and hurt somebody in a store.
- In this case, the store may have breached its duty of care by not repairing that ceiling. At the very least, the store has a duty to provide a caution sign, or rope off a certain area. If this duty is breached, the hazard of the loose ceiling section is apparent.
- A personal injury claim should demonstrate a connection between the risk or hazard and the accident.
- In the previous example, a piece of a ceiling falls on a patron. To establish the link between the hazard and the accident, a Personal Injury Florida attorney can help.
- Expert testimony may also help to show that the ceiling was sufficiently worn and that a portion of it fell off due to this issue. It can be shown that the fall directly led to the shopper being trapped under the weight of the ceiling.
- Thirdly, a personal injury claim should demonstrate a connection between the accident and the injuries sustained. For example, a person may suffer a severe leg injury in a car accident. That claimant must show that the accident led to that leg injury.
The experienced Florida Personal Injury Lawyers and experts can prove this connection by showing how the car was impacted and damaged. However, the claimant may have trouble arguing that the same accident led to a head injury. In some cases, claimants may have pre-existing conditions that are unrelated to the accidents. - Finally, a personal injury claim must show a connection between the injury and the damages.
- In general, damages are money awarded to the claimant related to make the victim whole for the injuries they suffered. Proving certain kinds of damages may be difficult.
- Many claimants can show that an injury led to medical bills and lost wages. After all, if the individual wasn’t injured, he or she wouldn’t have these expenses. However, it’s harder to prove the link between injuries and other damages. A claimant may have trouble showing that a slip and fall accident may render a victim incapable of performing future activities.
Offering The Florida Personal Injury Lawyer Depends On
- In the end, personal injury can be easy to claim, but hard to prove. When litigating for personal injury victims, we at Berke Law Firm, P.A., know what it takes. Put simply, it takes a team of experienced and professional lawyers. We have a track record of winning cases for all types of personal injury victims.
- Your personal injury claim begins with an initial consultation and may end with you receiving fair, monetary compensation.
- Although we cannot guarantee that you will be awarded maximum compensation, we can guarantee that we will fight for your rights.
- A lot of law firms may claim that they have the best attorneys or the most storied reputations. However, how many firms can actually back these claims? How do you know when you’re being deceived? How do you know it’s not all just exaggeration and puffery? Easy. You look at the track record. The track record never lies.
You deserve the reputable Florida Personal Injury Law Firm in your area. At Berke Law Firm, P.A., we have the Personal injury expert Florida loves. This speaks to our versatility, our accountability, and our capability in the practice area of personal injury law.
These laws are complicated. They cover numerous situations, circumstances, and settings. Without the assistance of sound legal counsel, many personal injury claimants will get denied.
That is why Berke Law Firm, P.A. doesn’t stand down. We don’t back off. We don’t fall away. Our seasoned team is geared toward optimizing your claim. We will handle all types of personal injury cases.